Railway water-tank



(No Model.) 2 Sheets -Sheet 1. y

'0. 0 WRENSHALL. RAILWAY WATER TANK- No. 363,934. Patented May 3l, 1887.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2..

- O. O. WRENSHALL.

RAILWAY WATER TANK.

No. 363,934. Patented May 31, 1887.

,(IMOMQMLOJQT .UNITED STATES PATENT OFFI E.

oHAnLns c. WRENSHALL, or sr. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

RAILWAY WATER-TAN K.

. SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 363,934, dated May 31, 188'7.'

Application filed January .22, 1887. Serial No. 225,086. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES .0. WREN- SHALL, a citizen of the United States-residing at St. Paul, in the county of. Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented certain Improvements in Railway Water-Tanks, of which the following is a specification.

As railway watertanks are usually constructed they are provided with a valve located in the bottom thereof and communicating with the outlet-pipe, through which the water is discharged as required into the tanks of locomotives'on the track opposite the tank. The objections to this construction are that access to the valve can be had only when the tank is empty, and that often the valve becomes defective, or a chip or other obstruction will become lodged under the valve in such position that it cannot be closed, and consequently the water will run out of the tank, causing serious injury to the tracks by washing out the track-bed or by the formation of ice on the tracks. Another objection is that the mud and sediment from the water that is pumped into the tank settles in the bottom of the tank, forming an inclined surface over the bottom, sloping toward the valve opening and causing muddy water pumped into the tank to run directly to the valve. I overcome these objections by providing tanks of this class with means by which access may be had at any time to the valve without removing the water from the tank for the purpose of repairing it or removing obstructions therefrom, and by providing means by which the valve is kept clear of the mud and sediment that accumulates on the bottom of the tank. I secure these objects by the means hereinafter more particularly described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a sectional side A trap-door, 21, is provided in the floor at the top of the box, through which access may be had to the box.

In the wall of the box 15, at a suitable distance above the bottom of the tank, I provide one or more openings, 23, through which the water may pass from the main part of the tank into box 15. I prefer to provide, the box with two openings, 23, in the opposite walls thereof, at points substantially opposite each other.

- Ihe openings 23 are provided with suitable.

doors or valves, 25, that are preferably hinged to the walls of the box at the tops of the openings and open outward into the main part of the tank. These valves 25 are connected by links 27 with an operating-rod, 29, that extends upward through the box 15. I

I prefer to connect the rod 29 with a suitable hook, 31, on the under side of the trapdoor, so that when the door is opened the valves 25 will be closed, and when the door is closed the valves will be opened. The pressure of the water inthe tank tends to close the have been shut by means of the operating-rod already described. The valves 25 may be provided with a covering of leather, 33, or other suitable material to serve as a packing when the valves are closed.

The method of using this appliance will be obvious. structed by any substance, or if it become defective and need repairs,the trap-door at the top of the box can be opened and the doors or valves 25 can be closed. When the operating-rod is connected with the door, the valves valves 25, and to hold them closed after they If the outlet-valve become obwill be closed as the door is opened. The water in the box can be allowed to escape, and

the attendant can then descend, into the box and put the valve into working condition.

The inner wall of the box will usually be provided with a ladder to facilitate the descent into the box.

I have described the invention as particularly applicable to a railway water-tank, but do not wish to be understood as confining myself to its application to a tank of this class, as it may be applied to other tanks with beneficial results. i

As the openings from the tank into the box 15 are at some distance above the bottom of the tank, the mud and sediment will settle in the tank below these openings, and the clear water will run into the box and pass out through the valve-opening.

I claim as my invention-'- 1. The combination, with a tank of the class described, of an outlet-valve, a box surrounding said valve and extending above the waterspace of the tank, openings in the walls of said box, valves covering said openings, and means for operating said valves, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with a tank of the class described, of an outlet-valve, a box surrounding said valve and extending above the waterspace of the tank, openings in the opposite 3. The combination, in a tank of the class described, of an 0utlet-valve at the bottom of the tank, a box surrounding said valve and extending above the water-space, openings in the walls of said box at a point above the bottom of the tank, valves covering said openings, and means for operating said valves, all substantially as described.

4. The combination, in a tank'of the class described, of an outlet-valve, a box surrounding said valve and extending above the waterspace. openings in the walls of said box, valves covering said openings, a trap door at the upper end of said box, and an operating'rod connected with said valves and with said door, substantially as described, and for the purpose set forth.

' In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 15th day of January, 1887.

CHARLES C. WRENSHALL. In presence of- E. W. OSBORNE, A. C. PAUL. 

